2018 has been an unbelievable year for me. Started with the first sunrise at a quaint British beachside with flatmates turned friends turned family. A hectic course of masters with a journey of self-discovery as a creative and plenty of sleepless nights finishing up masters project with fellow coursemates. Inspiring and motivating meetups with some of the great advertising and marketing experts in Leeds who would graciously share their experiences and provided critical feedback on my work. Traveling to Spain to meet my father after months of living abroad. Going to India to surprise my friends and family. Completing my master’s degree with merit from the University of Leeds. Going to interviews and learning how to deal with rejections.

Such has been the delightfully chaotic journey of 2018.

With the end of the year and completing the graduation, my friends planned to travel abroad for a graduation trip. My personal graduation trip is a road trip with family in India. From the bustling city of Mumbai to the famous north Indian hill station of Nainital, where my grandparents stay. A distance of 1,751.2 km in the duration of 2 days. Not only was the journey long and filled with eating food in different cities but covering miles by road on the beautiful highway with mountains and greenery on either side was a whole new experience. Listening to songs that matched the mood and we all would sing aloud together while munching on snacks. From sunrise to sunsets, from fog to clear skies, who knew 2 days could show you a plethora of colors all green, brown and yellow of mother nature.

Reuniting with the entire family after more than 2 years and celebrating Christmas was more fun than imaginable. As I sip french organic coffee right now at in the crisp winter morning sunshine sitting next to grandpa and listening to the chirping of the birds and the quietness of this wonderful forest side farm, I am counting my blessings and going through the ride of 2018 and hoping that 2019 will be nothing less than a wonderful chapter in my life.

Life update: I have landed my first job in China and the next stage of my life will begin in the new year of 2019.

Internet shopping, backed by Alexa and easy home delivery with free return policy has caused a major apocalypse. Brands which fail to look into the revelation and who are scared to make a change are all capsizing due to the heavy consumer rebel storm.

Data does not lie.

Be it M&S or Debenhams or Clarks, the ignorance of what consumers really want and just trying to cope up in the market is not how the retail game is played. John Lewis, please take a note. Companies treating data as their enemies are not realizing that the numbers and figures are here to help.

2017 saw a rate of 16 stores a day shutting down and yet corporates failed to tap the reason for the mishap. Consumers today are not bound to stick with a company that does not comply with their demands, they have more options, better discounts, more deals, and higher savings to look at. Demand and supply both are equally increasing at a very high rate. Consumers prefer to buy things online and go to the store to find something different and buy that too. Not making stores appeal to the consumers and having nothing new to come in store for will make it irrelevant to have a store offline in the first place.

I was 17 when I first heard about Toastmasters International, a club which enables one to become a better public speaker and a good leader. My uncle who was a member himself, was telling my brother (then, a to-be software engineer) to attend a meeting and develop his overall personality. Me, being a person who always loves to go to different events, googled it up and saw that you have to be 18 years of age to actually attend a meeting. This rule for some reason made me more curious as to what actually goes on in that meeting. My brother, like any other introvert didn’t really look it up or took any initiative. As soon as I turned 18, I went off to my first meeting of Mumbai Toastmasters club and since then I have been addicted to the positive and charming vibe of every Toasmtasters club. Now the question arises, how does public speaking have any connection with copywriting?

Know your audience. This is one fundamental rule of being a public speaker which implies to copywriting as well. This not only enables you to know what words to use and what jargons can be avoided but it also helps you to include humor, stats and other elements both, in your speech and in your copy.

Practice, Practice and Practice. Before you go up on the stage to speak in front of an audience you should practice the time, the points in your speech and even the order of the speech. In terms of copywriting the more you practice writing and editing your own work, the better you get.

Storytelling. One way to captivate your audience, both, who listen and who read, is storytelling. It makes the content memorable and enticing and helps you to easily bring the core message home. We all have been listening to stories since the time we were kids and we all crave a good climax, an idealistic hero and a villain, don’t we.

The three similarities between public speaking and copywriting as you speak what you write and you should write like you speak. Well, at least sometimes!

17th September, 2017 British Airways Flight no. BA108, from London to Leeds.

18th September, 2017- Day 1 of MA Advertising and Design course in University of Leeds.

Last year, this week I had left the comfortable arms of my homeland and embraced a life of uncertainity and excietment. It was a beginning of a series of ‘firsts’ for me.

First time international trip

First time solo travel

First time masters

First time hostel experience

First time living alone

First time cooking

First time celebrating birthday’s and anniversaries on video call

First time turning 21

First ever international interview (first ever interview for that matter).

After living in a home and within a country for 20 years, I did feel excited about going abroad ofcourse. But I was also a little nervous if I would be able to keep up the with the changes. Being the youngest person in the family, going soo far from home was difficult and exhilarating at the same time.

It has been one year today and the things that I have learnt each day has been soo refreshing and unexpected. From learning how to cook to learning how to spend money, everything I learnt here. It was not just the subject knowledge that I developed, I honed personal and professional skills too. I learnt:

One should always stay positive, no matter what.

Feeling sad does not make you a weak person.

Instead of avoiding challenges, learn to love the feeling you get after you do something you are scared of. I’ve now started challenging myself. I used to avoid going anywhere alone and now I have started attending networking events alone.

How to be open to different point of views and listen more.

How different cultures work. And also that mother’s in all countires are the same.

Respecting different religious point of views.

Importance od talking more about politics, something which is not done openly in India. And when done, people end up fighting.

Confidence. I have gained soo much confidence now that I can feel the change in myself. I believe self-actualization is very important.

Overall, this year was full of growth and learning and challenges. As I finish my masters and move ahead to the next phase of my life, I am more determined that the world is my oyster and that sky is my limit. Self-belief and confidence go a long way.Take control of your life and believe in yourself, nothing is impossible.

It started out with a personal journey to get started on developing a personal brand as I started out freelance content writing. I never knew how important it was to actually identify yourself as a brand but when I started out freelancing and moved to UK for my masters, that it when it all dawned up on me.

A brand can be a person, a product, an event or even an organization. Even we are a brand. It is important to think ourselves as nothing less than a personal brand. The way your dress, the way you talk, the way you present yourself, the way you make sure your presence does not get unnoticed, your confidence, everything is part of your personal brand. How could you develop or find more about what your identity or personal brand stands for is quite a task in itself. Along the way I found out many points which helped me and I hope they help you too.

Know thy self. I never knew how tough it was to actually know who we actually are. It takes a lot of time and patience and more than anything HONESTY to know you are.

ASK, ASK and ASK

Identify your quirks. Find your magic. Find out how are you different. Honestly it very easy to try to act like others, dress like others, talk like other but it is indeed tough to be different. In this world we are all coming out like clones, with same set of skills, same level of knowledge but it is essential to know how are you different? What makes you YOU?

Color. Every person is associated with a color, it is important to identify what color reflects your personality. Colors not base on time of year or color of flowers, it reflects your mood. Have you noticed, banks have mostly blue color. That is because blue color reflects trust. What color does your personality reflect, find it!

Ask others. Identity is not just what you think of yourself. A major part is also what others think about you. It is very tough to be brutally honest but find that top 15/20 people in your life, close friends, family members, professors, colleagues and tell them to give you nothing but the truth. Take this as an actual survey, email them, talk to them personally (this is how I did it) or even call them up. But get down and ask qualities that you should have, your weaknesses according to them, your color according to them, why do they like you, what skills according to them do you have, etc. Make your own set of questions and you will discover so many new interesting points which you ever thought you had. It will also be helpful to compare your identity list with the answers you received from others and see what matches and what differs and sit down and see why that happened.

THIS IS A JOURNEY OF SELF- DISCOVERY

Once you have successfully identifies your quirks, your colour and your pros and cons. You can conquer it all. From make a perfect portfolio which represents you, to having a personal touch t everything you do.

I remember mentioning the necessity of change and evolution in today’s time. But recently, I have been asking myself, why is it necessary? Change where and how and why and with what is required? These questions are not to be taken lightly by any brand.

In the race to stay relevant, there was a time where every brand wanted to have an app. Irrespective of their category requirement or the need of audience, an app was what every brand wanted to have. The situation as not changed yet. Brands still are in the competition business. Marketing is been done not with product orientation or market orientation in mind, but with looking at what the competition doing. Look at the Heinz Beans ad, which got banned for the second time by ASA. Why does Heinz need to place itself in healthy food category? The USP of the brand has been its heritage and emotional connect the brand had with audience. Just in order to be out there, the advertising agencies should keep in mind not to play with brand image and its values.

Brands should not just be all over the place. They should know how to stay relevant, what the consumers want, what do they actually stand for and find a creative approach to tell their story and stay relevant.

It’s a very common saying, “Focus on your strenghts”. Every brand and corporation tries to build itself on its strenghts, putting the best foot forward. Even we as human beings do the same. While meeting a person for the first time, we don’t say what we dislike or hate, rather we share what we like to do and what we love, try to find similarities, etc.

We are also brands. Even if we don’t realise it. But I belive that the brands that accept thier weaknesses and admit them out openly without being scared, are true are reliable. Each brand has an image to live upto and a personality, just like humans. But both flaws and flawless is what makes us humans, and that is exactly what makes brands more human like for us to believe in them.

Marmite, since the time it has launched has adpated itself to be the change and be in sync with the cultural trends. The campaign ‘Love it or Hate it’ was a example of how confident the brand is about itself, it’s consumers and it’s image in the market. They took the market reseach and honestly contemplated about how some people feel that the product is grim. They didn’t hide the fact that some people just do not like it. This very human touch of a brand by revealing it’s strengths is what made it dearer to it’s exisiting fans.

So dear brands, be more bold, share your strengths and your weaknesses. They are a part of you too.

Evolution has been the key of living since the time earth came into existence. Either you evolve or you erode. That is how the market functions in todays society. With big data and the technological realm being bombarded with AI, it is essential for all brands to take up the challenge and incorporate it in some way or the other.

The new age market that everyone is trying to focus on- millennials are very different. Millennials are the largest group of market out there which are ruling the purchase decisions of the economy at the moment. They dictate what is ‘in trend’ and what’s not.

Looking at something as finite as food industry, where consumers quite often take decisions without overthinking a lot, is trying to reinvent and crack down what really makes a difference in the way millennials eat or order food. The main insights that were shared in an article by campaign, “eating is a social trend” was found out by the team of Isobar and KFC. It’s not just what you eat, its also about how you eat it, how is it packaged for you, what is its visual appeal and even how it smells and tastes, its all recorded in digital space which can make or break a brand.

So, eventhough you might be a compay that sells bottled water and a brand that represents ‘bring freshness to life’, you still have to bring technology to add heartbeat for your exisistence.

It’s Easter holiday here in the UK and mostly all my flatmates have gone back home or travelling. The most experienced flatmate who stays right in front of me, Lin happened to bump into me today in the kitchen. It is always good to see him as mostly it is hard to see him even during the term time as he is always busy in volunteering, traveling or even organizing an event somewhere.

He went to an event yesterday and was telling me about a stranger that he met and their conversation. To me, this conversation has instilled more than just confidence, it has hit me with a dash of magic spark!

“As I was leaving from the event, an Indian or maybe a Pakistani boy started a conversation with me and asked me if I liked the event or not. I had not noticed him before so I was a bit perplexed. He said he was just 18 year old and thought even I was under 20 yr (peculiar Lin laugh). While walking home, he asked what advice would give an 18 year old guy. I found this question very interesting. (wait for the answer, because trust me, it is more than just interesting…)

Never say “why?” Always say, “why not?”

At the age of 18, you should not be thinking of excuses to do things. Don’t think that it might not be fun, or no one else form your friend group is going or any other reason to not do things.

The only two things that you should remember is:

Time. Use it very very carefully.

Is it something illegal?

I have never left out any opportunity as without giving it a shot. Even when I am in the UK, and I see a job opening in Taiwan, I still send in my resume just in case they would have the opportunity open if when I go back or not.

When I was in my second year of my undergrad, I saw an opening in a company which required minimum 3 years of experience, I looked at its credentials and thought I could do it, and I applied. I didn’t think that it was a full time course, I didn’t think it required 3 years experience, I said “why not apply”. I had nothing to loose. ”

If you ever see Lin in the hostel, he would be working on his assignment. He is a part of so many different communities and has traveled more than I ever did in my life only in these 7 months since he has come year. Every weekend he goes to a new city for a day trip, volunteers at so many different events every single week, writes 400 words daily and is still filled with so much energy. When I asked him about how does he manage to stay so disciplined he says;

“I consider time to a be a very valuable resource. And it should be used very carefully. Use your time in not just saying that you are busy, but actually do something that is your time’s worth, be it travelling, reading, going to art galleries or anything. There might be factors that you need to count in like money or legality but other than that don;t use excuses to stop you from doing things that you should be doing.”

I guess this advice is extremely valuable irrespective of how old you are.

Check out his channel, where he teaches Chinese words(explaining them in English) at his Instagram channel mr.yam.tw and show him some love.

TAKE MORE RISKS – this is one thing that I am coming across a lot nowadays. It seems like everyone who could not dare to take risks, wants our generation to do it. However, have you noticed that despite the meaning of risk -chance taken, people are planning and researching on how to take more risks in life.

Despite of the fact that world is better place to live in, given the fact that people can do whatever they wish to do with their lives, society still tends to dictate the right’s and wrong’s, the do’s and not to do’s.

“Enjoy your life but not too much!”
“Live everyday was the last day of your life, but do it by being most productive at work”
“Be the most creative person in a room, but earn to get a comfortable luxurious lifestyle”

Well the 9 to 5 desk job is considered a taboo and an uncool thing to do anymore. Risk taking is being planned and categorized under steps. Funny, isn’t it?

Can all these things be achieved by merely taking risks, saying yes to things more often, or listening to people who have ‘preaching’ as a day job?

You can’t do things both way, be bold and smart, living life of no regrets yet being productive, it just at times you need to do what feels right! That’s the actual risk that has to be taken. It’s your inner voice with which you should negotiate to take take risks and not other people.

Planning or Risking?
Bold or Smart?
Cliche or Unconventional?

What according to you is risk taking? Planning with a step by step action plan or just taking a plunge?

Recently, I have been in love with writing lists, a lot of lists. It all started out with making a list for groceries and it ended up being a list of places to visit in Spain.

It’s been months to be honest, since I have had this new addiction of writing lists. It wasn’t this bad at all initially, but then it all started to escalate too quickly. Targets to achieve in a month, things to do in a day, amount of things to buy every time I go out and not getting anything extra, and so on….

For the first month of 2018, I am quiet happy with how much I am following this new “my ritual”. I had a list of mere six things in my list(trying to look at few things and taking hings slowly)

Exams

Job Applications

Visa applications for Spain

Read more

Go to the library more often

Start going to the Gym.

Well out of these I confess, I did only four, that to only the ones which were important and time sensitive and had a reward. Like preparing and getting done with my exams, applying to a few places which I had saved, doing my VISA application process so that I go to Spain to meet my father after months, going to the library more often to study well and of course reading more as I like doing that. But things that I didn’t feel rewarding like going to the gym was not even touched (which I am not pleased about). But with this one thing is very clear , that in order to accomplish our goals we will only work towards them if we can see a visible reward that comes after it.

For the next month I will try to make everything in my list seem rewarding in the long run so that this time I can accomplish more that just 4/6.

” I think goals should ever be easy, they should force you to work, even if they are uncomfortable at time”

– Michael Phelps

We all tend to follow a daily routine which we have been following since years.
Wake up, Eat, Office/ College, Eat, Sleep, Repeat.

It is human tendency to find comfort and stick to things or people that make us feel comfortable. But do you really think that you are going to grow with such comfortable surroundings? The answer may make you feel uncomfortable(but it’s true). The answer to this my friend is NO!

You can’t grow if you don’t step out of your comfort zone. Take a leap of faith and do something which you want to do, yet makes your feel miserable. To grow, you have to feel the discomfort, befriend it. It will feel awkward and maybe you will be very bad at things initially, but that’s how you will learn and master it, by doing it.

“Discomfort brings engagement and change. Discomfort means you’re doing something that others were unlikely to do, because they’re hiding out in the comfortable zone.”

-Seth Godin

Be open to opportunities.
Take more risks.
Say ‘yes’ more often
That’s how you will achieve more

Building change or a habit is uncomfortable, messy and annoying but it to reach the ultimate stage of achievement.

Multi tasking is something which I am getting better at. It takes time, but the more I do it, the better I will get in it. The more multi-taking muscles I use, the more I will develop and enhance my skill of multi-tasking. This is the year to be the best you have ever been.

No one can wake up happy everyday. Everyone has a dark cloudy day in life. Today I had mine. Not feeling like myself. Feeling sad, depressed and caged in my room. I am used to the Indian sun but here, it’s been 2 days since I haven’t seen the sunlight. Blaming everything on nature is not good. The sadness is also because of exam stress. Multi tasking is something which gives me chills sometimes because I like to do things in such a way that I do my best. And so sometimes I feel disheartened. But with doing something that scares you, you get better at facing it and so that it what I will be aiming for.

Big deal! Yes it is. And as scary as it sounds, it is just the beginning of a wonderful life.

At the mere age of 21 or 22 yr old, we break out of our cocoon and enter a world of vast possibilities, or maybe not so vast. The two obvious roads that diverge at this point of our life are both walked on. Either pursue higher education, or start working somewhere. A less distinct path which is not very visible can be of that of a startup. It’s confusing for everyone. You’ll meet plenty of people who would give you recommendations, even when you don’t ask for them. At times, you’ll be told same things by random people in more than appealing way. Your decision will obviously be determined and influenced by what your peers are planning to do.

But remember,

1) Right now, it’s not about the paycheck.

2) Don’t just follow what your parents instruct. I know parents are always right. They want what’s best for you. They have seen the world more than you. But this decision should be your own. Don’t let them make it for you. It’s okay to be confused, everyone is.

3) Take time.

4) Confusion is your best friend. Ya! Seriously, the more confused you are about one option, the more you will research about it and read on that topic. Confusion will enable you to rediscover about an option and gain new insights, in turn developing more clarity.

5) Don’t play safe. Would you rather play safe now and regret at 40? I don’t think so either. Be brave and dare to be bold in your decisions. You are just 22! You’ll figure it out.

She was wearing a long red color gown, covered from top to bottom, perfectly color coordinated. She was talking in silence with my father, her face had a child like glow and she had magic in her eyes. She was very easy to understand, but there was something about her that had kept me standing there behind the curtains,staring at her, wanted to know more. I wanted to peep into her eyes as if they had answers to unasked questions. She was not looking back at me. Suddenly my father left the room, leaving her alone in the room. I stepped out, she finally saw me. I was walking towards her, my eyes transfixed at hers. I still could not fathom what I wanted to ask or what I wanted to know. I looked at her and she looked back.

Complete silence

I pick her and turn her first page.

She was the first book that I ever read. One that created a mystery and convinced me to read it. Harry Potter.

In the day when everyone wants to cook food within 5 minutes and wants to burn calories in 7 minutes, be someone who reads an hour everyday, be someone who goes for long walks, be someone who cooks for an hour to make someone else feel special.

Today everyone wants to get a job within a month, everyone wants to start earning money when they turn 16, everyone wants to get rid of acne by night, everyone wants to loose weight 1 month before a big event.

I learned to make French onion soup today. Struggle of not having your mother around when you are sick makes you learn a lot. I have constant running nose and cough that is giving me a pain to cough. I desperately wanted soup, but hello! I had to do it myself. With not many easy to make soup recipes that I found online, I decided to make french onion soup. And it turned out to be pretty delicious and warmth giving.

Don’t forget the pain you had when everyone is appreciating you on your success. Because the day you forget it, you will stop working hard and changing yourself to gain the fame. Let your work in silence be not known and people just see as a bird that was born from its ashes.

Take rejections as gracefully as you take an accolade. I am looking for internships and job placements here in the UK. I knew it was going to be tough, I knew it before applying. I got a rejection letter today. First ever rejection letter. And to be honest I was disappointed, but I have to move and apply to more companies. I can’t get disheartened. One reason for me getting rejected was that I require sponsorship for my work visa. Which is a genuine reason for rejection. I am ready to get more rejections in life because they will indeed help me build up my strength. I am fortunate enough to learn these lessons now and not be shattered later on in life.

Sometimes, You gotta do what you gotta do. Even though you don’t feel like doing it.

Learn how to write emails, seriously it is very important! Also writing cold emails. Cold emails are emails that you write to people whom you have never met in your life. I was listening to a very interesting ted talk where this was a very interesting point and I actually attempted to do it today. It was quite strangely absurd for me honestly.

Should I be very formal? Should I be casual? What will the person think of me when I write this? Am I being to funny?

I had all these thoughts while writing the email. At a certain point I was even like, “F**k, I don’t even know how to write emails!” Therefore the above learning. Learn to write emails first and then write cold emails.

Time is the only thing you can’t get back or get more of, why are you giving useless activities and things your time?

This was the most moving tweet of the day that I came across by Warren Buffet. But the irony is that I was wasting my time in useless activity ( so to say )and yet, that it what leaders and influencers use to create an impact and challenge the society to become innovators. Thought provoking, isn’t it?

How to be the pioneer of something? Do it.

Irrespective of what others think, what you might loose or if it’s a stupid idea or not. To be a pioneer, the only one on your field you have to move against the crown to stand out of the crowd.

I was reading an interesting case study of Louis Vuitton where I read that at the time when the brand decided to opt for a controversial strategy and to establish its own subsidiary, which was not something any other luxury brand would have thought of or rather risked to do, the company turned out to be a pioneer.

Learn from your mistakes, don’t cry over them. I was making Job application today and after 3 job applications, I found out a minor glitch in my resume.I was super pissed off at myself. For me, it’s a dream to work abroad and today because of a silly mistake, I have lost 3 opportunities. Being a copywriter, and making mistake in my own CV is no doubt shameful. But should I cry over it and keep cursing myself? Well, I did so for 3 hours, but I corrected the error, and started making more applications. There is no point in just sitting and crying over what you have done, instead, correct the mess and move on. I am definitely learning from the mistakes. From now on, instead of just attaching files and sending away in a whiff, I will check things multiple times. Going back to the basics (Copywriting 101).

What a wonderful start to my new year. I went to see the first sunrise of 2018 with my flatmates to Scarborough. The cold sand and immensely vast sky did not move us from our places. Our feet were sinking in the wet mud, we had to keep moving to stay above the ground. There were sea birds crying as the clouds were keeping the sunlight hidden for linger than expected. As the sun came up, we all soaked up the sunlight till it came up to our eyes, and we could not stare at it anymore. As week turned away, it made everything go a little less bright. That is what the sun does, doesn’t it, shines bright and makes other things look a little less bright.

In the other end of the town, the North bay was not as lit up.We were lucky to have gone on to the right side of the beach.

Embrace whatever you have. When we reached south bay of Scarborough, there were a few people running their dogs on the beach. They looked at us and were probably wondering what are these kids doing here so early, haven’t really seen them around, or I am sure someone must have thought we were drunk. But as a matter of fact no one else stood there to watch the sunrise. Not even a single one. They see it everyday and for them it was normal event, but because it was our first time there we were all stunned and out of words for the view was insanely picturesque.

With this wonderful start to the day, I am sure that this new year will be more exciting, more adventurous, more challenging and will make me grow much more.

Last year this day I was alone at my home in Mumbai, India. I had sent my parents on a holiday so that I can party with my friends. It was my first ever new year party with my friends. I was excited. But what I didn’t realise that time was that it was the last new year I could have celebrated with my family.

Today I am in a different country, with different set of friends-turned-family and equally excited to bring in this new year. I learned and achieved a lot in 2017 and on this last day of 2017 I want to share what I have achieved.

Looking forward to bring in 2018 with a bang, boom, bad-ass music, crazy dancing, drunk dialing my friends and calling them to tell them how much I love them . I hope my learning and achieving list increases next year. A big thank you to whoever who has been the part of my journey physically or virtually. I hope you a splendid new year.

Day 21: 23rd Dec, 2017

Trip to Cardiff and back to Leeds.

Here in the UK because the places all so close by and there is hardly any traffic as compared to Mumbai, the road trips are quick, short and fun. It took us about 2 and a half hours to reach Cardiff, and we parked out cars and went towards the pier area.

Ohh the Sun! I can’t express in words what it felt like standing in the crisp brightness staring up with eyes closed, my body taking in every sun particle that touches it. woah! That bliss!

The sea, the birds chirping, the sun, the silence all mesmerizing.

LIVE. I remembered talking to my father and he told me to travel lot. I remembered my friends telling me to not waste a single day and live each day. It was as if the place telling me to go wild and live.

Uncertainty is a part of life, embrace it. After the wonderful day in Cardiff, I had to say goodbye to my relatives and travel back to Leeds. I hugged my cousins and Aunt and my uncle dropped me to the coach station. I hopped on the bus. After 4 hours we reached Birmingham and even though I had booked a direct bus to Leeds, we had a 1 hour stopover in Birmingham, which was not as per plan. I stayed in the waiting area and got back in the bus after and hour.

What is HOME?

On my way back , one of my flatmate messaged me that if I reach before 12, I should knock on his door and see him. I was happy to go back. As soon as I got of the bus in Leeds Coach station, I felt like a warm (okay, it was pretty cold, but you get it), known wind was flowing across my face. I walked down the city center, music was playing in the streets, it was 10 yet the town was not asleep. Just 2 days before Christmas and there were people outside pubs and clubs, on the streets. It was full of life. Even though I walked in cold darkness, I had a smile which you could see under the street light because I was home. As soon as I came home, I dropped my bags and knocked on my flatmates door, hugged him tight and laughed. I knocked on everyone;s door and it felt very very delightful to be back, it felt like forever, even though it was just 2 weeks. This place is not just my accommodation anymore, its my home, where my heart is.

Day 20 : 22nd Dec, 2017

The entire day, I read ‘Hero’ while sipping on hot coffee. Spoke to my parents back home, spent time with my cousins and relatives. My vacation is coming to an end,and I will soon be back to the grind.

Be the reason someone believes in the goodness of people.

Today I while in the evening all of us went to the city center , like usual my little sister asked for a pound to spend. My little brother, sister and I went to Poundland to get her something, but it was too crowded, and I old her that we will buy something tomorrow for 2 pounds ad she agreed and walked with us. As soon as we left, she saw a beggar and sprinted off and gave that pound to him. That was the day I realised that with kindness you can win the world. My sister, everyday wants to buy something or the other, is very moody and throws lot of tantrums, but the biggest virtue that she has at he mere age of 10 (i guess ) is kindness. And I was overwhelmed with Joy.

It’s not the gift , but the thought that counts.

Christmas is right around the weekend and the Christmas spirit is taking over the world. Here in UK, it sure is a big, bright, bold and bubbling with joy event. My little sister was wrapping presents for all of us. Yes, for me aswell, which was kind of suprise because I was meant to be their guest only. I asked her why was she giving presets, it was Santa Clause that gives everyone presents. To this she said that Santa Clause gives gifts only to kids, but not to parents and elders and I wanted to make mom, dad and you also happy. So I am giving everyone a present.

She gave me a note which says, ” something to remember us” and within a foil paper was wrapped a little piece of white tack (my present).

I was reminded how unexpected life is and there is no point in planning everything in life.

I realised it is important to spend a little and it is okay.

I am proud of myself because I have started taking decisions on my own.

I am very very grateful to have people like my parents around who let me do things, who are open for me to go and explore places. I am a very stingy person and I wont explore places thinking that it is expensive, but my parents encouraged me to go and travel to Cardiff and not be that stingy. Not all parents do that. My father told me to collect tokens from every place I visit. I am truly blessed to have such amazing parents.

Appreciate the little things in life : All of this happened today and I am glad that I have started noticing the small pleasures in life.Slipping while walking, lit up Christmas tree, watching movie with a decadent chocolate ice cream in your cozy bed, getting greeted by people, having friends to laugh with. I have fallen in love with the ‘British sky’. The polluted urban commercial skyline of Mumbai had a different charm, but this is something really magical. I have fallen for you Leeds. You are a treat to my eyes.

Saying ‘NO’: It has always been hard for me to say ‘No’ to people. I always tend to say yes to people even if I don’t want to do something. I feel some sort of obligation. But today after saying ‘NO to something and actually telling myself that what I did was right I felt good. People many a times take advantage or rather take me for granted when I selflessly say yes to do things which I don’t want to do. It is also interrelated to one more lesson which I think I will take time to learn, but I will write it down anyway because at least I noticed. You cannot make everyone happy. And you are not supposed to make everyone happy other than YOURSELF.

It’s my birthday tomorrow. I am not at all excited for some reason. For many 21 years is a new turn to their life and therefore is huge thing. But I guess for me the major event happened this year. Moving to UK for my masters.For me making a new year resolution s not that important but making a goal on my birthday is very imortant. It has been exactly a year now since I had planned and decided that I wanted to study abroad and I am glad that I could achieve it. Now, I feel like doing more and achieving more but more than that actually living more.

I want to make a to-do list for my 21 year old and make it public so that I come back to it and see what all I have accomplished and what I haven’t.So here it goes:

I come across as an extrovert but I want to learn to be happy and content with my own self.

Travel alone (and no be scared to do so)

Make my own decisions (I still need my parents guidance in making choices, I know that’s silly but I can’t resist it. I intent to change it this year.)

LIVE life

Gain more perspective

Be Active.

I believe taking realistic actions towards things actually makes them happen. I am not a person who has a long list but I make sure that I successfully accomplish what I write down. So here is to turning 21, getting more drunk and making more of life than it is!

One of the trending acronym currently is ‘FOMO’ which stands for ‘fear of missing out’.

The power that social media holds on our heads can not be fathomed in today’s time and age. Not only has social media made us puppets of brands but also has forced us to reciprocate the feelings that the brands want to make us feel. With this has come the current trending human disorder called fear of missing out disorder where a person who is merely scrolling down his Instagram feeds and comes across his friend buying a latest tech or going away on a random holiday to a exquisite looking place feels some sort of depreciated value in terms of his social image. The person starts feeling the need to buy the same gadget or trotting around the globe on a trip , not to have fun to experience something but to just add an ego-centric caption to a cool picture and getting likes and triggering the social esteem needs of humans(or shall we call ourselves puppets now?)

Think about it, what is the value of a life that we live for others and not for ourselves? Are we just losing ourselves in the hands of brands or are we even finding ourselves back from the chaos and taking sometime off to see where we are heading?